Green Beans with Coriander and Garlic

If you are looking for an interesting and tasty salad option to serve as a side dish or an appetizer, this classic Portuguese recipe is guaranteed to be a great hit. Since trying it for the first time a couple of months ago, it has become a favourite in our house. This is the base recipe from which you can add your own twist and elaborate as you see fit. If you are out and about, look out for feijao verde com coentro on the menu.

Serving 6 – 8 people, this is perfect for a family meal:

Ingredients

1kg green beans

3 litres boiling water

2 large garlic cloves

2/3 cup fresh coriander leaves

5-6 tablespoons olive oil

1 tablespoon lemon juice

3-4 tablespoons cider vinegar

1/4 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper

First off, cut the tips off the green beans and place them in a large pan of hot water. Add a pinch of salt and cook on a medium heat until they become tender (roughly 10 – 12 minutes).

Whilst the beans are cooking, place the coriander and garlic into a heat proof bowl. When the beans are nice and tender, drain them off in a colander and return them back to the pan on a medium heat for HGH about one minute to dry them off completely. Once the beans are cooked and dried, place them on top of the garlic and coriander and leave to cool.

Mix in 5 tablespoons of olive oil and toss the mixture well to ensure that it all has a light coating. Now leave it to marinade in the mixture for 2-3 hours in the fridge. If you are well prepared, you could leave it for even longer as this will only enhance the flavour.

An hour before serving, bring it out of the fridge and leave it on the side to warm to room temperature. Just before you serve it, top it off with the lemon juice, apple cider vinegar and pepper. Mix it all in really well and viola, it is ready to enjoy.

Don’t add the lemon and vinegar too early as they will turn the beans an unappetizing brown colour and will take over the taste balance a little too much.

This recipe is super easy to make, and will add lots of flavour and interest to your meal. During the colder winter months, a variation of this dish can be made with warm beans straight from the boil, and this can work well with mashed potato.